Reed holder



March 20, 1951 Q c, BARTLETT 2,545,599

REED HOLDER Filed Feb. 4, 1949 FIG-3.3

IN V EN TOR.

CARL BARTLETT ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 20, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE REED HOLDER Carl Bartlett, Fort Wayne, Ind.

Application February 4, 1949, Serial No. 74,659

'7 Claims.

1 This invention relates generally to a spring clip device and more particularly it relates to a spring clip device especially adapted to serve as a holder for reeds of the type used for musical instruments, such as clarinets and Saxophones.

In the use of clarinets and Saxophones it is inevitable that the reed, which vibrates to generate tones of various pitches, becomes wet and water-logged to such a degree that it will not faithfully produce tones of the proper pitch. Furthermore, such wetting and the action of the musicians mouth on the reed tends to impart permanent curvature to the reed thereby to im pair the quality of tone produced by the reed.

It is conventional to provide reed holders which to a certain degree overcome the efiects of wetting of the reed. The prior art shows cases or boxes for holding reeds, but such devices make no provision for ventilation sufficient to promote reasonably fast drying of the reed. At least one reed holding case of the prior art includes structure intended to reform a reed after it has been wetted and deformed in use. This particular prior art device is unduly complex and expensive and probably goes beyond the mere correction of any distortion of the reed. In fact, the result of using this prior artdevice would probably produce other distortion of the shape of the reed which would be damaging to a greater extent than the original distortion.

The prior art cases or boxes are also inadequate in that they are bulky and cannot be carried on the person of the musician but must be carried in the instrument case. Another defect in the prior art devices is the lack of any structure for preventing damage to a reed as it is being inserted in the case or box. In particular, some provision is necessary to prevent damage to the delicate tip of a reed while it is being inserted in the case or box. 1

Accordingly, the principal object of this invention is to provide a novel reed holder of simple and inexpensive construction.

Another object of this invention is to provide a reed holder, the structure of which permits circulation of air and promotes the drying of the reed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a reed holder which is adapted to restore a reed to its original shape without producing damaging distortion of the reed.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a reed holder, the structure of which is specially adapted to prevent damage to the reed when it is inserted in the reed holder and when it is being carried on the person of a musician.

In accordance with this invention there is provided a reed holder for reeds of the type which comprise a shank portion and a tapered tip portion. The holder includes a base having a projection at one end thereof for supporting the shank end of the reed. There is attached to the other end of the holder a spring clip which extends to a point short of the projection and is adapted to exert a slight amount of pressure on the reed. For preventing damage to the tip of the reed when it is inserted under the spring clip, there is provided a shoulder on the clip for engaging the shank portion of the reed to limit'its movement into the holder.

For a better understanding of the invention, together with other and further objects thereof, reference is made to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a reed holder constructed in accordance with this invention and shows a reed inserted within the holder.

Figure 2 is a cross-section taken on line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3. is a side view of the mouth piece of a clarinet showing a portion of the clarinet within which the mouthpiece is inserted.

Referring to Figure 1 in the drawings, the reed holder constructed in accordance with this invention comprises a base portion i, the surface of which is substantially flat except that ribs 2 and 3 are provided at opposite ends of the base. Rib 2 projects upwardly and rib 3 projects downwardly for a purpose which will be described hereinafter. The ribs may be notched slightly as at t for the purpose of preventing transverse movement of a reed.

There is attached to the right-hand end of base i a pair of spring clips. 5 and 6 which extend to a point short of the rib 2 and normally rest in contact with the base as illustrated in the drawings. There is also provided another pair of spring clips '5 and 8 which extend frcm the end of base i adjacent rib 2 along the other side of base i and also to a point just short of the rib 3.

As in the case of clips 5 and 6, clips l and 8 also 3 inserted between turned-up portion l and base 1, whereby the reed may be pushed beneath the clip into a position better illustrated in Figure 2.

Conventional reeds such as H are formed to have a shank I3 and a thin tip l6, there being a tapered portion such as l5 between the shank and the tip. The clips 5, 6, I and 8 each have a cut-out portion such, for example, as [2 which forms a shoulder [4 for engaging the thick end l5 of thetapered part of the reed as illustrated at E5 in Figure 2. When shoulder l4 engages portion l5 of the reed, further motion beneath clip 5 is substantially prevented and the tip of the reed is prevented from engaging the end ofthe reed holder, thereby to prevent damage to the reed.

Referring to Figure 3 of the drawings, there is illustrated therein a mouthpiece adapted 'to cooperate with a clarinet 2!. Reed 22 is, shown in operative relation to the mouthpiece 20. It should be noted that the contour of the surface of mouthpiece 20 adjacent the tip of reed H is curved to provide a space within which the tip of the reed may vibrate whenthe musician blows into the mouthpiece. This is the portion of reed which becomes wetted by the players mouth.

This is due to the fact that pressure on the tip of reed H, exerted by some portion of the players mouth, curves the tip until it almost touches the curved surface of the mouthpiece 20. In order to correct such curvature'of the reed, the reed holder of this invention is provided with the rib 2 or the rib '3 for spacing the shank of the reed from the surface of the base'l, and the clip, such as 5,'is arranged to exert downward pressure on the shank of the reed 'so that there is a tendency for the clip 5 slightly to bend the tip of the reed adjacent'the point where it rests on the base I. Thus, asthe reed dries in'the reed holder, it is restored to its original form.

From the foregoing description, it is obvious tl'lat'this invention provides 'a reed holder which is simple in construction and which provides ample ventilation to promote the drying of a reed which is held within the holder. Also, it is obvious that the arrangement of the ribs 2 and 3 with relation to the spring clips presents a struc- T ture for correcting the shape of a reed after it has been used. Furthermore, the provision of shoulder. [4 prevents the user of the reed from damaging it when it is inserted in the holder. It is also inherent in the construction of this invention that the reed holder may be designed to include as many as ten to sixteen spring clips whereby the capacity of the reed holder may readily be expanded. t

This invention has been disclosed in the form of a reed holder adapted to hold four reeds, but it will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that the holder may be manufactured to hold only one reed or a plurality of them, and therefore it is pointed out that this invention should not be limited to the form illustrated in the drawings.

Attention is also drawn to the fact that the embodiment of the invention illustrated herein is formed of a single sheet of metal, but it should be understood that there are many ways of constructing the invention. For example, the spring clips may be made of separate pieces of metal or plastic and subsequently attached in any suitable manner to the base portion.

While there has been described what is at presnt considered the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may 4 be made therein without departing from the invention, and it is, therefore, aimed in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A holder for reeds of the type which comprise a relatively thick shank portion and a tapered relatively thin tip portion, comprising a base portion for supporting the tip of a plurality of reeds, a raised rib on one side of said base and adjacent one end thereof for supporting the shank end of said reeds, spring clips joined to the other end of said base and extending over said one side of said base toward said rib and terminating short of said rib to bear on the midportion of said reeds, said spring clips each having a turned-"up end and an aperture positioned inwardly of said turned-up end forming a shoulder arranged to have gripping contact with a reed to limit its movement.

2. A holder for reeds of the type which comprise a relatively thick shank portion, a relatively thin tip portion and a tapered portion between the shank and tip portions, comprising a base portion for supporting the tips of a plurality of reeds, a first projection on one side of said base'and adjacent one end thereof for supporting the shank end of a first reed, a second projection on the other side of said base and adjacent the other end of'said base for supportmg the shank end of second reed, a first resilient clip joined to said other" end of said base and extending over said one side of said base toward said vfirst"projection and terminating short of said first projection to bear on the mid-portion of said first reed, ase'con'd resilient clip joined 'to said one end of said base and extending over said other side of said base toward said second projection and terminating short of said second projection to bear on the mid-portion of said projection on the other side of said base and adjacent the other end of saidbase for supporting the shank end of a second reed, a first spring clip joined to said other end of said base and extending over said one side of said base toward said first projection and terminating short of said first projection to bear on th e'mid-portion of said first reed, a second spring clipjoin'ed to said one end of said base and extending over said other "sideof said base toward said second rojection and terminating short of said second projection to bear on the mid-portion'of said second reed, said spring clips each having a turned-up free end and a stop 'positioned inwardly of said turned-up free end for engaging the tapered porprise'a relatively thick shank portion, a relatively thin tip portion and a tapered portion between said shank and tip por'tions, comprising abase portion for supporting the tips of a plurality of reeds, a first raised rib'on one side of said base and adjacent one end thereof for supporting the shank ends of a first pair of reeds, a second raised rib on the other side of said base and adjacent the other end of said base for supporting the shank ends of a second pair of reeds,

a first pair of spring clips joined to said other end of said base and extending over said one side of said base toward said first rib and terminating short of said first rib to bear on the mid-portions of said first pair of reeds, a second pair of spring clips joined to said one end of said base and extending over said other side of said base toward said second rib and terminating short of said second rib to bear on the mid-portions of said second pair of reeds, saidspring clips each having a turned-up free end and an aperture forming a shoulder inwardly of said turned-up free end for engaging the tapered portion of a reed to limit its movement.

5. A holder for reeds of the type which comprise a shank portion, a tip portion and a tapered portion between the shank and the tip portions comprising, a base, a projection on one side and at one end thereof for supporting the shank portion of said reed, a cli fixed to the other end thereof and extending over said one side to a point short of said projection for exerting pressure on said reed and a stop on said clip for engaging the tapered portion of said reed to limit its movement.

6. A holder for reeds of the type which comprise a shank portion, a tip portion and a tapered portion between the shank and the ti portions comprising, a base, a projection on one side and at one end thereof for supporting the shank portion of said reed, a clip fixed to the other end thereof and extending over said one side to a point short of said projection for exerting pressure on said reed, said clip having a turned-up free end and a stop positioned inwardly of said turned-up free end for engaging the tapered portion of said reed to limit its movement.

7. A holder for reeds of the type which comprise a shank portion, a tip portion and a tapered portion between the shank and the tip portions comprising, a base, a projection on one side and at one end thereof for supporting the shank portion of said reed, a cli fixed to the other end thereof and extending over said one side to a point short of said projection fo exerting pressure on said reed, said clip having a turned-up free end and an aperture cut to form a shoulder on said clip inwardly of said turned-up free end for engaging the tapered portion of said reed to limit its movement.

CARL BARTLETT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 828,145 Snodgrass Aug. 7, 1906 1,593,776 Raymond July 27, 1926 1,706,063 Higgins Mar. 19, 1929 1,857,488 Weeks May 10, 1932 1,997,820 Govani Apr. 16, 1935 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 115,761 Austria Jan. 10, 1930 541,432 France May 2,1922 

